Solas Stainless Steel Wear ring

[OCD Solutions]

I'm surprised nobody has covered this yet but I wanted to post up a quick few comments about the Solas wear ring I installed today.

First off, how can you argue about a solid stainless piece that will never rust or corrode or swell and bind the pump? These things are perfect for guys running saltwater and while a bit on the pricey side, their longevity will more than pay for the additional cost.

Now, the counter response to my first point is going to be weight. Well, yes, it is heavier but only by a little more than a pound. For some that is still going to be a deal breaker but for this guy, that is a deal well worth making.

 

[Gliderskier]

I have one and I don't care about weight one but. Awesome wear ring but just wait until you see how fast your prop wears down now if you ride in the break a lot

 

[OCD Solutions]

I have heard others say the same thing but the stock wear ring is stainless as well so why would it be any different?

 

[Gliderskier]

Got me but it's true

 

[txsuperjetfreak96]

It surely isnt any heavier with wear ring and stator section then say the torrent pump

 

[OCD Solutions]

Got me but it's true

Is that based on Internet chatter or personal experience? I find it very hard to believe that one stainless liner would cause any more wear than another. Now, if you had one of the pumps with bad bearings that allowed the impeller to move around and make contact, I could see that increasing wear. Not trying to start anything either, I've heard this from a few people now and just trying to wrap my head around possible reasons.

A second wear ring showed up yesterday thanks to Jetmaniac so I'll be running one of these in each ski which is kind of why I'm curious about the wear issue.

 

[eastcoastjumper]

Tom and I both got the solas stainless ring and granted we ride a ton, and in shallow surf because it's fun, my brand new hooker wore out within a month. The gap from blade to stator just kept getting bigger. Wear ring is great, maybe those impros impellers stainless material is the problem

 

[OCD Solutions]

Wow,! That's actually quite unacceptable. I'll be running a Skat swirl in mine and a hooker in the wife's ski. I'll record the clearances on both so I have a baseline and go from there I guess.

 

[BruceSki]

I experienced a similar issue. Just sent my prop out to be brought back to 144mm before daytona. Rode it once at home and 4 days in daytona. I'll let you know how the clearance looks after five rides.

I ride the same break as the two guys above and we end up doing a lot of close to shore riding when the waves are small. Really speeds up the wearing process when you are pumping sand through the pump the whole ride.

 

[JetManiac]

Interesting observations. Maybe the superthin ss inner liner of the oem can 'give' a little against the soft aluminum as opposed to the thick solid ss wall of the solas?

Side note to Boyer, are you installing pump sections dry or did you put silicone, plumbers putty, or antiseize between them?

 

[Jr.]

It's not the part, it's the ride location and type of riding. When we rode beach break in NJ and beach launched, we had the same issues. The fine sugar sand is constantly waterborne, thus very gritty and wears pump parts rapidly. The southern guys who inlet ride, don't have nearly this issue. Plus most of Fla, is a hard pack sand. While it will still do it, not nearly as fast.........
Wish we had the Solas setups back then


Ski Ya, Paul

 

[BruceSki]

Agreed the riding type does it.

But we are noticing it much faster with the Solas wear ring over an oem.

 

[Big Kahuna]

How is the tolerance of the Solas vs Oem in regards to the space between the blades and the wear ring

 

[BruceSki]

Mine was tight enough that you couldn't see daylight around the blades. But it was too tight where it wouldn't turn.

I didn't measure with a feel er guage or anything though.

 

[eastcoastjumper]

Tolerance was perfect. Definitely a good part, but like @Jr. Said riding when there's constantly sand in the whitewash speeds up the process. I admit I ride in the whitewash a lot, that's where the fun is!!